Reacting sharply to the World Bank report on the ease of doing business listing Tamil Nadu, one of the most industrialised states in India, at the 12th position, senior state government officials termed the report "purely a perception-based analysis, and not based on factuals and efficiencies". While agreeing that there are some areas where Tamil Nadu needs to improve, the officials said the report, released on Monday, did not take into consideration many key parameters.
The officials also questioned how Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled states top the list, while states such as Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Punjab which are more industrialised and investor-friendly, are on the bottom. The report has not been received well by the state government, which held its first Global Investors Meet last week and signed memoranda of understanding worth Rs 2.46 lakh crore.
The officials asked how the report can compare states such as Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and north-eastern states with states such as Tamil Nadu, which has higher penetration of industrialisation than the former lot. They said it's unfair that states without even proper roads, power, social security and a decent literacy ratio were compared with Tamil Nadu, which is much better placed in all these parameters.
More From This Section
As far as Tamil Nadu is concerned, one the major issues is related to value-added tax (VAT). In the survey, there were 44 questions, of which the answer was 'yes' for 28. For issues such as e-payment and e-signature, the state's commercial department has proposed some amendments. Once these amendments are passed by the legislature, the entire VAT administration will be online.
TAMIL NADU’S CLAIMS TO FAME |
|
Notably, the score on online implementation in pollution clearances was better for the state as Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board had implemented online consents.
The officials agreed that the state's labour department is not tech-savvy, but it has started online inspection.
"I don't think any serious investors will be fooled by all these things. Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu are the largest states in terms of growth of industry and output," said an official, who did not wish to be named. He, however, agreed that the neighbouring state of Andhra Pradesh is a tech-savvy and efficient with government departments taking to information technology early on.